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LatSalle 

and tKe 

Griffon 



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in 2010 with funding from 
The Library of Congress 



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HISTORICAL PAPER 

DKWVKRED 

By C. M. burton, 

before the 

SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS 

OF THE 

STATE OF MICHIGAN. 



AT A SOCIAL COURT HELD AT THE RESIDENCE OF 

GOVERNOR THEODORE H. EATON, 

JANUARY TWENTY- SIXTH, 

NINETEEN HUNDRED AND TWO. 



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1903. 

Winn & Hammond, 

Detroit. 



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LaSalle and the griffon. 



By C. M. Burton. 



ON the 26th day of January, 1679, was laid the 
keel of the Griffon, the first sail vessel on 
Lake Erie, and the last sail vessel built and 
sailed on this lake for more than half a century. 
Some question has been raised as to the exact loca- 
tion of the shipyard of the Griffon, but it is sufficient 
for us to know that it was located on the Niagara 
River, between the Falls and the present City of 
Buffalo, probably on the eastern side of the river, but 
possibly on the Canadian side. 

Rene Robert Cavelier, commonly known by the 
name of LaSalle, which was the name of his ances- 
tral estate in France, came to America in 1666, at 
the age of 23 years. He early evinced a desire to 
explore the western country, along lines that were 
entirely unknown at that date. 

LaSalle in his youth had studied for the priest- 
hood, but the education obtained in his preparatory 
studies directed his mind along the lines of liberal 
thought, then quite prevalent in France, and he soon 
concluded that he was not fitted for the ministry, 
and so turned his attention to more worldly affairs. 

The Society of Jesus, commonly called the Jesuits, 
was very powerful both in France and in Canada at 
this time, and its influence with the Court party and 
constant attempts to control the political affairs of 
the new country had raised against it a host of 
enemies. 



Governor Frontenac was the most important of 
the enemies of this Order in New France, but there 
were many others of lesser note then, and in after 
times, as LaSalle, Cadillac, and all of the priests of 
the other religious orders, who were outspoken in 
their opposition and suffered in consequence. 

In some ways Frontenac and LaSalle were alike. 
Both zealous in their love for their mother country, 
and anxious that its unknown territory should be 
explored and reduced to a proper subjection. Both 
decidedly opposed to the Jesuits, and determined 
that they would not be subject to the rulings of the 
Order. Both indefatigable in the work in which 
they were engaged, and determined to succeed at all 
hazards. So it happened that these two men fell to 
liking each other, and their contact was a matter of 
benefit to both. 

A fort had been erected upon the north shore of 
Lake Ontario, which LaSalle obtained as a grant 
from the King of France, and with the grant he 
obtained the privilege of founding there a colony to 
be administered to by a Recollet Friar. The same 
plan was followed many years later by Cadillac in 
the founding of our own City of Detroit, and with a 
like result, in that it brought down upon the head of 
each the wrath of the Order of Jesuits, then the 
most powerful organization in the world. 

It was hard for either man to stand up in opposi- 
tion to this Order, and the troubles and trials of 
each may largely be laid to the opposition of this 
enemy. 

LaSalle had conceived the idea that by progress- 
ing westward along the line of the St. Lawrence 
River, and beyond, he would ultimately discover a 
passage that would lead to China, and, it is said, that 



this idea, promulgated at this time to a horde of 
imbehevers, was scoffed at and ridiculed to so great 
an extent that the LaChine Rapids in the River St. 
Lawrence were so named in derision of LaSalle's 
contemplated expedition to China through those 
waters. 

The building of Fort Frontenac, at Kingston, 
was in opposition tO' the wishes of the Iroquois In- 
dians, with whom the French could never keep on 
friendly terms, and they desired its destruction. It 
was not destroyed, but it did not prosper, and it was 
not long before LaSalle asked permission to leave 
it, and to work on further, into- the unknown coun- 
try in his explorations. 

In 1678 he obtained permission to explore the 
western country, and began making preparations 
for the journey. 

We now know that as early as 1656, and possibly 
much earlier, certain persons had passed around 
Lakes Erie, St. Clair, and Huron, and through the 
Detroit River, and had explored the same sufficiently 
to make a fairly accurate map of the waters, and the 
adjacent land. This map had been published in 
Paris, by the official geographer, and copies of it 
were quite extensively circulated. These maps show 
that there were Jesuit missions scattered all over the 
lower portion of Canada, between the Detroit River 
and Lake Ontario, but they do not show that the ex- 
plorers knew of the Falls of Niagara, or that there 
was any connection between Lakes Erie and On- 
tario. 

It is fair to suppose that LaSalle knew of the ex- 
istence of these maps, for they w'ere printed in 
France and sold publicly. Their existence has 
always been known to students, but little attention 



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to them was paid by Windsor, Frost, Bancroft, or 
Parkman, and no mention is made of them by any 
of these writers to prove the early exploration of 
the western country. 

In 1669 LaSalle had accompanied the two priests, 
Dollier de Casson and de Galinee, as far as the Falls 
of Niagara on their trip through the Great Lakes, 
but at this point he had returned to Montreal, and 
they had proceeded on their journey and had made 
a map of their explorations, showing the Detroit 
River, but the map had not, in 1678, been published, 
and was not published for many years, though 
LaSalle may have seen the original draft. 

So far as can be ascertained, LaSalle did not know 
how large Lake Erie was, or where a voyage would 
lead to, if once started upon its waters. 

He built a brigantine of ten tons on Lake Ontario 
in 1678, and in order to extend his operations in 
trading and exploring further west, he planned to 
build a larger vessel above the Falls on Lake Erie. 

His chief companions were Henry DeTonty, he of 
the iron hand ; LaMothe de Lussiere, who, I believe, 
was a near relative of our own Antoine de la Mothe 
Cadillac, and Father Louis Hennepin. Father Hen- 
nepin was a Recollet priest, at that time an intimate 
friend of the great explorer, and one of the recorders 
of the events of this occasion. The brigantine was 
employed to convey materials from Montreal for the 
purpose of building the new boat, and a tramway 
was built to convey the heavy materials up the eleva- 
tion between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. On the 
26th of January, 1679, the keel of the boat was laid, 
and men worked diligently to complete the vessel and 
get it launched, lest it should be destroyed by the 
Iroquois, who had threatened to burn it. The loss 



of a part of the materials for the new boat required 
the return of LaSalle to Fort Frontenac and Mon- 
treal for new supplies, and subsequently Hennepin 
also returned to Fort Frontenac. In the meantime 
the work on the boat progressed, and in May it was 
launched and named the Griffon. It sailed part way 
up the Niagara River, but did not ascend the Rapids, 
and rode at anchor until the arrival of LaSalle, Hen- 
nepin, and LaForest. With the arrival of these men 
the heavy materials, anchors, cannon, munitions, and 
provisions were carried over the portage and around 
the Falls. Several times the sails were hoisted and 
the Griffon attempted to ascend the Rapids to the 
lake proper, but every attempt was a failure. Aj; 
length, however, towards the end of July, or the 
first of August, 1679, a propitious breeze, with the 
aid of the land force towing the boat, carried it 
through the Rapids, and they were upon the great 
inland sea. 

Tonty, in his narrative of the events of this period, 
says that just before the Griffon succeeded in mount- 
ing the Rapids of the Niagara, he, with five men, 
was sent forward to the mouth of the Detroit River, 
there to join fourteen Frenchmen who had already 
been sent to the place. This would indicate a knowl- 
edge on the part of LaSalle of the existence of the 
Detroit River and the topography of the country, 
though this information might have been obtained 
from Joliet, who had come down from Detroit River 
and met the party of LaSalle at their stopping place 
at the Niagara, while the Griffon was being built, or 
it might have been obtained from either of the maps 
before mentioned. Tonty arrived at his destination 
on the 20th of August, having set out on the 226. of 
July. Here he awaited the coming of LaSalle and 



Hennepin, with their companions on the Griffon, 
who had started on the 7th of August, and upon their 
arrival the entire party embarked and proceeded up 
the river to Lake Huron. Tonty makes no mention 
of Lake Ste. Claire. 

Hennepin's account of the Detroit River is very 
interesting, and it is apparent that the company was 
surprised and pleased with the prospect of the coun- 
try. Vast prairies, which stretched as far as the eye 
could see, and bordered by hills covered with vines 
and orchards of fruit trees, with groves and high 
forest trees. On the banks of the river were quanti- 
ties of deer, stags, kids, bears, not wild, but easy to 
catch, more delicious to eat than the fresh pork of 
Europe. They also found wild hens and swans in 
great quantities. They covered the high sides of 
their vessel with the skins of the deer they killed in 
the chase. As they ascended the river they found 
the banks covered with forests of walnut, chestnut, 
plum and pear trees, and wild grapes, from which 
they made a little wine. 

It seems almost with prophetic pen that Father 
Hennepin wrote on this occasion : "Those who will 
have the good fortune one day to possess the lands 
of this agreeable and fertile Detroit will bless those 
who have made smooth the road and who have 
traversed Lake Erie through more than a hundred 
leagues of unknown navigation." 

Hennepin proposed to LaSalle to found an estab- 
lishment at the Detroit, he was so greatly pleased 
with its location and prospects, but LaSalle had other 
objects in view than stopping when his journey had 
but just begun, and so he proceeded. 

It was on the nth day of August, 1679, that they 
entered the Detroit River, and the next day they 



reached a small lake, which, in honor of the Saint's 
day of August 12th, they named Lake Ste, Claire, 
Passing into Lake Huron they crossed the lake under 
many difficulties and through severe storms, and 
landed at Michilimackinac. The party proceeded to 
Green Bay, where the Griffon was loaded with furs, 
and dispatched on her return trip. On the i8th of 
September the loaded Griffon sailed for Niagara, but 
without LaSalle, Hennepin, or Tonty. She was 
wrecked a short time afterwards, but in what spot 
was never clearly ascertained. Thus begun and 
ended the sail navigation of the Great Western Lakes 
by the French. 

The quarrel between the French and Iroquois 
lasted for some years, and the French did not dare 
undertake any improvements along the border of 
Lake Erie. Other explorers occasionally passed 
along the shores of Lake Erie and entered the upper 
lakes, but they used only the canoes and larger bat- 
teaux. The French were in possession of the country 
and claimed to own it, though the English would not 
acquiesce in their claim, and in 1689 sent a detach- 
ment of troops under two officers, McGregor and 
Rosebloom, to explore and take possession of the 
upper country in the name of Great Britain. The 
Englishmen were captured on Lake Huron and 
stripped of everything and sent to Montreal. 

Nearly every advance into the western country 
was made on a road leading northwest from Mon- 
treal, along the Ottawa River to Lake Nippissing, 
and from that lake to the Georgian Bay. A post that 
was called Detroit, and which was located near the 
entrance of Lake Huron, on the banks of the River 
St. Clair, was destroyed by orders of the French 
Government in 1688 (August 27), and from that 



date until the founding of Detroit, in 1701, by Cadil- 
lac, the French held actual possession on the lakes 
only of the upper country, though they claimed pos- 
session of the entire lake region. In 1702 Cadillac's 
wife made a trip through Lake Ontario, around the 
Falls of Niagara, and along the shores of Lake Erie 
to Detroit, and thereafter this was the usual route 
for traders and voyagers. It was sixty years more 
before the English came to Detroit as conquerors, 
and then Robert Rogers, the New England Ranger, 
came with his companies of troops to take possession 
of the place in the name of the English Government. 
He, too, came with canoes and batteaux, for there 
were no sail vessels in existence. The coming of the 
English marks an era in the progress of lake naviga- 
tion, for the very next year, 1761, two sail vessels 
were built on the Niagara River for use on Lake 
Erie. 

Before the building of any vessels. Major Walters, 
who was in charge of Niagara in 1760, reported that 
he was afraid sloops would not answer on Lake Erie, 
for the reason that there were no harbors, nor could 
such vessels get near enough to shore, owing to shoal 
water. He thought shallops and batteaux would be 
more serviceable. Notwithstanding this discourage- 
ment, in the following year Lieutenant Robertson 
arrived at Niagara to build lake vessels, and that 
3^ear a Mr. Theis built two vessels on an island in the 
Niagara River for service on Lakes Erie and Huron, 
and as far as Lake Superior. One was a schooner 
drawing seven feet loaded, and carrying six gtms, to 
be commanded by Lieutenant Robertson of Mont- 
gomery's Regiment, and the other, a sloop to carry 
ten guns. I do not know these boats by name, that 
is, not so as to be able to identify them, but the 



"Serpent," "Beaver," "Charlotte," "Gladwin," "Vic- 
tory," and "Boston" appeared at about this time. 

These vessels played an important part in the 
siege of Detroit, and it is largely owing to the assist- 
ance received from them that Major Gladwin was 
enabled to withstand the attacks of the Indians until 
they were exhausted and discouraged. Major 
Gladwin himself sailed from Detroit on the 30th of 
August, 1764, on the schooner Victory. Almost on 
the same day Captain John Montresor explored the 
River Rouge, four miles from its mouth, to find a 
proper location for wintering vessels. In this year, 
also, men were set at work on He au Cochon, our 
Belle Isle Park, cutting timber for two scows to be 
used for bringing stone and other materials to the 
village. These boats were 70 feet long and 18 feet 
broad, capable of carrying 25 tons. 

The new coming English and American citizens 
had taken nearly exclusive control of the carrying 
trade, and it increased very rapidly. It was esti- 
mated that in 1764 there were 180 boats employed in 
the Indian trade at Detroit, and that the trade 
amounted to £100,000 per annum, but it must be un- 
derstood that most of these boats were small, for the 
larger sail vessels did not increase in number very 
rapidly. The first of the sail vessels were owned by 
the Government, and were used for military pur- 
poses, though they brought up freight when not 
otherwise employed. The British officials seemed 
unwilling to allow individuals to engage in the busi- 
ness. No serious fault was found with this proce- 
dure for many years. A shipyard was built at the 
water's edge at the foot of Woodward avenue, ex- 
tending some distance easterly from this point, and 
here some buildings were erected for the officers and 



! .ofC. 



men engaged in the naval department, and a force of 
men was kept employed during the Revolutionary- 
War. 

The Government appointed Alexander Grant, a 
Detroit citizen, whose family afterwards resided at 
Grosse Pointe, and who was master of the Brunswick, 
commodore of the lakes, to have general charge of 
the lake marine. Grant was a man of considerable 
importance, a member of the privy council, and at 
one time president of Upper Canada Parliament. He 
held the office of commodore for many years, and 
during the period the shipping business thrived. I 
believe that private ownership of vessels began after 
the French war was ended, but that during the 
Revolution all vessels were either owned or con- 
trolled by the British Government. 

During British control there were many more 
boats put on the lakes; the Angelica, Adventurer, 
Athabaska, Annette, Chippewa, Enterprise, Dun- 
more, Detroit, Faith, Felicite, Good Intent, Gage, 
Hope, Harlequin, Hunter, Nancy, Ottawa, Saginah, 
Speedwell, Weasel, Wyandotte, and Welcome, and 
perhaps others. Many Detroit merchants were in- 
terested in or owned vessels for their private busi- 
ness, but the largest single vessel owner was the 
Northwest Company, of which McTavish, Frobisher 
& Co., of Montreal, were the representatives, and 
Angus Mcintosh and John Askin the local agents 
and contractors. A number of the boats above named 
belonged to this company. 

After the War of the Revolution was ended, the 
British still retained possession of Detroit, and of 
the lakes, in utter disregard of the terms of the treaty 
of 1783, and still carried the trade of all the upper 
lake regions to Niagara, Montreal and Quebec. They 



stationed armed vessels all along the west end of 
Lake Erie, to prevent succors and assistance from 
reaching General Wayne, on his progress northward, 
that ended in the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. 
Two years later the lake posts were abandoned by 
British troops, and the reign of the Republic began. 
Concerning the cost of building boats during this 
period, little can be determined at this distance of 
time, but I have in my possession the account of 
Peter Curry for building and managing the sloop 
Detroit from 1792 to 1796, and I have copied the 
items merely as a matter of curiosity. Peter Curry 
was the owner of a large tract of land on the River 
Rouge, adjoining the parcel officially known as the 
Ship Yard Tract (Woodmere Cemetery), and sit- 
uated on the southerly side of Fort street. This was 
the shipyard for this part of the country, for here the 
ship timbers could readily be obtained, and the River 
Rouge was always navigable and never subject to be 
disturbed by storms. The parcel of land next below 
Mr. Curry's was owned by McTavish, Frobisher & 
Co., the representatives of the Northwest Company, 
and here their vessels were made, repaired and stored 
when not in use. 

The account with the sloop Detroit is as follows : 

1792. To services in conducting and building the 

sloop, from November 8, 1792, to May 

18, 1793, 192 days at 11/- £105-12-00 

To allowance for gil4 gals, rum while 

building the sloop 18- 5-00 

To pay, as master, from May 19, 1793, to 
Dec. 8, 1793, 6 months, 21 days, at 
£ 12 per month 80- 8-00 

1793. To primage on £1556-15-4 at 2j^% 38-18- 4 

To paid Superintendent's fees 12- 2-T0 

To one year's pay as master of the Detroit. 160- 0-00 

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1794- To primage on £954-9-10 at 2^/^% 23-17- 3 

To paid Superintendent's fees 11-18- 

To pay as master, 6 months, 28 days, at 

£ 160 per year 92- 8-ioJ/$ 

1795- To primage for one year 8- 8-ioJ/^ 

1796. To paid Superintendent's fees 4- 8-10^ 

To a chest of tools used in building vessel. 9- 6- 8 
To zil mos. allowance of tea, for use of 

the cabin, i lb. per mo., 12/- 22-10-00 

To zn nios. allowance of loaf sugar for 

cabin, at 4 lbs. per mo., 4/- 30-10-00 

To transportation of merchandise in the 

cabin 100-10-00 

Total, N. Y. Currency • • £945- 5- 8^ 

The bill is instructive in showing the rapid dedine 
of the Canadian carrying trade, for with the end of 
the account in 1796 came the American occupation of 
the lake ports, and the carrying trade was at once 
diverted to the American ports in American boats. 
The trade to Montreal and Quebec was nearly at an 
end, and Buffalo, Albany, and New York were the 
eastern trading posts. 

The schooner Washington was the first American 
vessel on Lake Erie, in 1797, but others soon ap- 
peared and many of those formerly designated as 
Canadian craft became Americanized. The new ves- 
sels that appeared were the Montreal, Rover, Ran- 
ger, Cincinnati, Swan, Adams, Wilkinson. The 
earliest return of duties received on American ves- 
sels that I have in my possession is for the year 1800. 
There were only four vessels, the schooners Thames, 
Montreal, and Wilkinson, and the sloop Washington, 
registered. All of these sailed from Port Erie, 
Canada, to Detroit, and all were British except the 
Wilkinson. The total tonnage was 255, and the total 
duties collected was $15.30. The next year the ton- 
nage had increased to 330, and the duties to $25.22. 
In 1802 the tonnage was 497, and the duties $29.83, 
and every vessel belonged to American citizens. 

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Shortly after the outbreak of the War of 1812, 
the British captured Detroit and became virtual mas- 
ters of the lakes. There were no battles on the water 
until the Battle of Lake Erie, September loth, 18 13, 
and Detroit still held the British army. The vessels 
in this battle were the Detroit, Chippewa, Hunter, 
Queen Charlotte, Lady Prevost, and Little Belt, on 
the side of Great Britain, and the Lawrence, Scor- 
pion, Ariel, Caledonia, Niagara, Somers, Porcupine, 
and Trippe, under Commodore Perry. This was 
the only naval battle that ever took place on the 
western waters, and no better description of its result 
can be written than that dispatched by Oliver Hazard 
Perry to General William Henry Harrison : 

"Dear General : — We have met the enemy and 
they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner, 
and one sloop." 

The battle was so disastrous to British hopes and 
expectations that they despaired of longer retaining 
Detroit, and that place was evacuated within a short 
time, and the Battle of the Thames and defeat of 
Proctor soon followed. The war ended with the be- 
ginning of 181 5, and an era of hard work and pros- 
perity followed. 

Steam navigation had already been tried on Lake 
Champlain, and in 18 17 a steamer appeared on Lake 
Ontario. The Walk-in-the- Water, the first steam- 
boat on Lake Erie, was built at Black Rock, a few 
miles below Buffalo. 

It is a fact worthy of notice that the Niagara 
River has been the shipyard for the commencement 
of navigation at the three epochs of marine ship 
building. It was on that river that the Griffon first 
floated. It was there also that the Beaver and Glad- 
win were launched, eighty years later, the first vessel 

15 



made by Englishmen, and again after an interval of 
nearly sixty years more the forerunner of our vast 
navy of lake carriers slid from its stays into the 
waters of the Niagara on Thursday, May 28th, 1818. 

As much difficulty vi^as experienced in getting the 
Walk-in-the- Water into the waters of Lake Erie as 
there had been 129 years before in getting the Grif- 
fon through the same channel. The engine was not 
powerful enough to crowd the boat through the rapid 
current of the river, and after several days spent in 
making attempts, twelve yoke of cattle were attached 
to a long hawser, and by the aid of this new power, 
the "horned breeze," the boat was finally brought 
into the calmer waters of the lake. 

This steamer reached Detroit Thursday, August 
27th, 1 8 18, and plied between that place and Buffalo 
until she went ashore in a storm in the fall of 1821. 

The immediate successor to the Walk-in-the- 
Water was the steamboat Superior, and this boat was 
soon followed by others. The western fever had 
broken out in the East, and the tide of immigration 
set in shortly after these boats came to be used, and 
the fever did not subside until after the panic of 
1837. There were no railroads, and the best way of 
reaching Michigan was by way of the Erie Canal, 
and thence by boat to Detroit. The boats were 
crowded during the entire period of navigation and 
new and larger steamers were added every season. 
It was estimated that the boats landed at the wharfs 
of Detroit one thousand strangers every day in the 
season of 1836, and probably as many or more the 
next year. 

Everyone went wild with land speculation, and 
there were more boat accommodations for passengers 
in those years than there are at the present time, 

16 



though the elegant boats of that time would appear 
but as hovels compared with the floating palaces of 
to-day. It is not necessary, or perhaps profitable, to 
further follow the story of lake commerce. 

I have said nothing of the ship-wrecks, the storms, 
the great losses that have occurred on these lakes 
from the launching of the Griffon to the present time. 
Millions of dollars of property and thousands of lives 
have been taken by these waters as a penalty for 
riding on their bosoms, but in spite of all discourage- 
ments, the lake carrying trade increases every year 
and has become the wonder of the world. 

The tonnage that passes the locks at Sault Ste. 
Marie is more than double that which passes through 
the great Suez Canal, and all that passes through the 
Straits of Detroit exceeds many times that which 
enters the port of Liverpool. 

After I had completed writing the foregoing I 
received a letter from your worthy Governor, which 
contained a clipping from the Review of Reviews in 
1902, as follows : 

"In 1899 there were more than 36,000,000 tons of 
freight carried through the St. Clair River. This 
seems large when it is stated by itself, but its real 
magnitude will perhaps better be appreciated when it 
is known it is 10,000,000 in excess of the tonnage of 
all the seaports in the United States for the same 
year, and 3,000,000 tons in excess of the total ar- 
rivals and" clearances, both coastwise and foreign, of 
Liverpool and London combined." 



17 



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